In infants, in particularly in infants of less than 6 months old, the digestive system has to develop and adapt to food. Because of this, for the first months of their lives, infants are usually fed specialised infant formulas.
Usually, such infant formulas are well tolerated. However, in a limited number of cases, conventional formulas may lead to minor problems, in a particular with respect to the processes that occur in the gastrointestinal tract.
More in particular, in the research leading up to the present invention, it was acknowledged by the inventors that conventional formulas may lead to undesired disturbances in the natural gut flora and/or to an unnatural gut flora Also, it was acknowledged that conventional infant formulas may provide the wrong type and/or the wrong amounts of substrate; and/or may have the wrong composition of diet components.
Such defects in conventional formulas may lead to undesired processes in the gastro-intestinal tract and/or to an undesired disturbance of the natural processes. In turn, this may lead to symptoms such as:                an undesirable constitution of faeces (e.g. diarrhoea, constipation or unnatural colour tone);        high local gas production, which may result in cramps in the infant gut and/or to bloating and delayed stomach emptying;        a decreased bioavailability of divalent cations;        undesired levels of aggressive agents in the faeces, in particular agents that can irritate and/or damage the epithelial cells (such as those of the lining of the gastrointestinal tract and/or the skin) including but not limited to proteases.        
As a result, infants which are fed conventional formulas may suffer from reduced appetite and/or regurgitation of food (often in case of disturbances in the gut). Also, disturbances in the natural process of stomach emptying and an irregular consumption pattern may occur, which may cause hunger, as a result of which infants may consume large volumes of formula too hastily, which in turn may lead to excessive aerophagia and/or regurgitation.
Also, as a result of the problems, causes and/or factors indicated above, infants which are fed conventional formulas may suffer from an impaired immune function which may become evident in rapid development of a rash on the skin of the bottom; under-nourishment (impaired growth), malfunctioning (colic) and even damage to the gut (intolerances to food components).
Thus, there is a need for an infant formula that has improved characteristics with respect to the prevention and/or alleviation of one or more, and preferably all, of the above-mentioned problems. The present invention provides such an infant formula.
In this respect, it is of importance that the formula of the invention is capable of preventing, alleviating and/or reducing all of the above-mentioned problems simultaneously. This is because, in particular for a parent, it may be difficult to establish the specific cause of the problem(s). Thus, by using an infant formula of the invention that can prevent and/or alleviates all of these problems simultaneously, parents may be assured that by the use of the infant formula of the invention, all such problems can be reduced, irrespective of the cause thereof, and without having to switch from one formula to another until one has found an infant formula that reduces the presently occurring problem(s) without causing any of the other problem(s) mentioned above.
Usually, when one or more of the above problems occur/persist, a parent will usually switch to another formula or—if that does not help—consult a pediatrician. However, of all infant formulas currently on the market, none has characteristics that can prevent or alleviate all of he above-mentioned problems simultaneously. Thus, the switching to another formula may not reduce the problem and/or may lead to one or more of the other problems mentioned above. Also, the infant may have problems getting used to (the taste of) the new formula, which may lead to a reduction in appetite. The latter may in particular be a problem when—because of the above-mentioned problems—the formula is or has to be changed several times.
In the research leading up to the present invention, it was acknowledged by the inventors that some of the major causes of the disturbance(s) of the processes in the gastrointestinal tract as may occur with conventional infant formulas include:                the fact that, in the triglycerides present in the (lipid component of) conventional infant formulas, undesirably high amounts of palmitic acid, myristic acid, and/or stearic acid are present in the Sn1- or Sn3-position of glycerol;        the fact that conventional infant formulas contain undesirably high amounts of divalent cations, and in particular undesirably high amounts of calcium ions. In particular, this is a problem when at the same time, there are high amounts of palmitic acid, myristic acid, and/or stearic acid are present in the Sn1- or Sn3-position of the triglycerides present, i.e. as mentioned above;        the fact that conventional infant formulas contain insufficient amounts of suitable substrates for micro-organisms, i.e. for the naturally occurring intestinal flora.        
Thus, according to the invention, these above-mentioned problems are solved by the following measures, which result in an infant formula according to the claims.